Life In A Year
by LozieDeanon
Summary: A year of Kaede living in Sternbild with Kotetsu and Barnaby. Compatible with The Rising, but no spoilers. Kotetsu/Barnaby, written for Honey-Crow-San's birthday.


A birthday present for tumblr user Honey-Crow-San, following a year in the life of Kotetsu, Barnaby, and Kaede.

* * *

Winter wind slips under scarves and coats as dozens of middle school students walk through open gates and into the tall brick school. They don't notice a blonde superhero checking the school's name against a printout map. They don't notice the older bearded man next to him, shifting from foot to foot against the cold. They don't notice the the twelve-year-old girl between them, who started living in Sternbild four days ago.

"Nervous?" Kotetsu asks.

Kaede tucks her mouth inside her scarf. "Dad, I'm fine. I'm not a little kid."

"You can be a big girl and still be nervous, right?" A gloved hand rests reassuringly on her shoulder. "It's fine. They're going to love you."

"I'm a transfer student," Kaede mumbles. "Everyone already has friends…"

"Transfer students are exciting! Nothing exciting happens in January, so everyone's going to want to hang out with you!"

"Speaking of exciting," Barnaby interrupts. "We need to see the principal to get Kaede's homeroom assignment and schedule."

"Oh, hang on! We need a first-day photo!" Kotetsu retrieves his phone from his pocket and tugs off one glove with his teeth.

Kaede rolls her eyes, but smiles in front of the school gate as Kotetsu snaps a picture. Then he shoves Barnaby forward so he can pose beside Kaede and commemorate the moment. Barnaby is surprised, but smiles. Maybe Kaede smiles a little wider with Barnaby by her side, proud and excited. With that photo done, Barnaby returns the favor and snatches the phone from Kotetsu's hands so he can be photographed with Kaede in turn. Maybe Kaede's smile is smaller, but she is _certainly_ still proud and excited.

After that pose is done, Kotetsu and Barnaby make eye contact, then look back at Kaede, and back at each other, joy fading with a slight disappointment.

"Well, thanks for letting me be nostalgic!" Kotetsu pats Kaede on the back a few times. "My little girl's growing up so fast!"

"If we're finished, we should head inside," Barnaby comments, but he doesn't actually move toward the door. Kotetsu doesn't seem in a rush to move, either, and he picks fluff off of Kaede's jacket.

"Ugh, honestly," Kaede mumbles. She marches in the opposite direction of the school and taps on the window of a parked car, catching the driver's attention. "Excuse me. I'm very sorry to bother you, but will you take a picture of me and my dads?"

The 'dads' blink in unison—that title has never been applied to them both _together_—but they have no time to question Kaede because the driver is getting out of the car.

That mid-school-year picture is so good, they have it framed and put on the wall.

* * *

Barnaby and Kaede get most of their one-on-one time while running errands or in transit from one activity to another. It's a side-effect of he and Kotetsu working nearly identical hours. But, Kaede gets a few precious hours each week of Barnaby to herself. He rarely talks about himself, but he asks questions about Kaede's day and adds comments in a way that doesn't make Kaede feel self-centered. He's legitimately interested in _her life_, because he _cares_ about _her_.

Once, Barnaby picks up Kaede from school to take her to skating practice, and after a quick update about Kaede's day, Barnaby mentions, "Actually, there's something I'd like to discuss with you."

"What is it?"

"There's a folder in the back seat."

Kaede reaches behind her and finds a manila folder. It's full of printer paper written on in perfectly straight lines, discussing things like "guests," "food," "gifts," and "decorations." She gapes at the meticulous notes, and sort of wants to laugh—she can't imagine putting so much effort into the planning of anyone's birthday—but she doesn't want to laugh at Barnaby, and is too shocked to do anything but stare. He's taken note of well-loved restaurants and their reservation schedules, asked for the availability of just about every hero, compiled evidence of Kotetsu's interests based on habits or passing comments in the interests of narrowing down a present for him.

"I was hoping for your help in planning Kotetsu's birthday party," Barnaby says.

"You've got a lot of stuff here," Kaede keeps flipping through pages. "What do you really need me for?"

"I'd like your help to finalize decisions. I have many options, but I'm not exactly sure what he'd like."

"What kind of parties did you throw in the past?"

"Rock Bison organized his birthday the first year we were partners. The year after, we weren't in contact with each other." There's a sad twinge in his voice. "And last year, he insisted that I let his birthday pass quietly, so I did, but he was sullen for a few days after. That's obviously not what he wanted."

"How has Dad celebrated _your_ birthday?" Kaede asks.

Barnaby scoffs. "Usually with poor-taste surprises. He's gotten better with each subsequent year, but he always tries to do something unexpected."

"Well, maybe that's how Dad wants his birthday celebrated," Kaede suggests. "And then he can _think_ that we had forgotten to celebrate, but then we have a party anyway."

Barnaby is quiet. Kaede tries to gauge his expression, but Barnaby has an impressive poker face.

"…That sounds good," Barnaby decides. "There's no need to go overboard, but some sort of surprise is a good idea."

Kaede grins and hugs the folder of notes to her chest. "I'm glad you like it."

The 'surprise' they plan is a dark and supposedly empty house and a dozen party poppers in a dozen sets of hands. The instant the light clicks on, Barnaby, Kaede, and all the invited heroes burst from behind furniture and pull the popper's strings, showering Kotetsu in streamers. Kotetsu _screams _and jumps, but in a minute realizes that the explosions and projectiles are celebratory.

"Are you trying to give me a heart attack?! I could've kicked the bucket!" Kotetsu complains, but he's laughing through his admonishment. Either way, he finds it in his heart to not only forgive Barnaby and Kaede for organizing such a surprise, but accepts the invitation to have dinner and drinks, surrounded by his friends.

After, he hugs his daughter and boyfriend and daughter. "Thank you," he says. "That was a great birthday."

* * *

It's late.

Barnaby is driving. Kotetsu sits in the front seat. Kaede sits behind him, and her backpack and gym clothes sit behind Barnaby. She likes watching the way the lamps along the highway cast shadows on Barnaby's faces, and how the light ends up a little bent by his glasses. Kotetsu has his chair leaned back a little too far, and Kaede feels a little claustrophobic, but she can swing her knees toward the middle of the car and avoid getting crunched.

The day was long, and now it's late. Kaede tried out for three different spring-season sport teams, just to see if anyone wanted her. She didn't need a pickup until hours after school ended, and Barnaby swung by to bring her back to Apollon Media. Kotetsu and Barnaby's day had been busy too, but as they were putting the finishing touches on their office work, their call bands summoned them to appear on Hero TV, leaving Kaede to do homework and eat vending machine snacks for dinner while the cleaning crew gradually turned off the lights around her. By the time they returned to collect her, everyone was exhausted, and as much as Kaede enjoys watching the shadows flash across Barnaby's impossibly handsome face, her eyes gradually slide shut.

Time passes, and Kotetsu asks, "She asleep?" His voice sounds like a warm hug.

"I think so."

A pause, before Kotetsu speaks again, "Long day."

"It was."

"Our commute is longer now, too."

"It was more important that we live near good schools."

"I know. And I like the new place. Still, long commute."

"I see."

The idle chatter continues, observations and opinions and musings about that day, about past days, about future days. Kaede rarely hears her dads talk like this: comfortable and relaxed, with low, tender voices. They fill the air inside the car and cradle her as the vehicle speeds on.

Kaede wonders how often Kotetsu and Barnaby share moments like this. They probably had lots of them before Kaede moved in. The period before she started living in Sternbild makes her sad—because it's a stretch of time in which Kaede might as well have not existed to them—but she's happy all the same. Her presence isn't a burden. She hasn't robbed her dads of these little talks.

* * *

"Hey, look! I can't believe I still have these!"

Every single closet is empty. All of their contents rest on other available surfaces, from tables to beds to floors. Barnaby sifts through them efficiently, separating the precious treasures and useful tools from the accumulated junk and superfluous extras. In addition to sorting the items, Barnaby ensures all the empty closets are spotless before they end up filled again. His loyal partner—in this case, Kaede—manages the "trash" and "donate" bags, supplies cleaners, and puts the worthy objects back in the closets. Kotetsu does his best to get distracted.

"What is it?" Kaede can't help her curiosity.

Kotetsu digs his hands into the box and produces fistfuls of Pez dispensers. "I started collecting these when I was your age. Got really into it in high school, but not so much now. I still pick up a few new ones each year, though. There's some heroes in here, too!"

"Which ones?" Kaede drops her black garbage bag and kneels beside Kotetsu.

"Kaede," Barnaby interrupts with polite force. "Could you give me a new dust cloth, please?"

She glances between Barnaby and the Pez, conflicted, but hops up to fulfill for Barnaby's request.

"The donation bag is almost full, too. Could you get a replacement while you're up?"

"Sure!"

Kotetsu watches his daughter flit out of the room in search of the roll of garbage bags, and he frowns. "Why does she listen to you?"

"Because I don't make her feel like a child," Barnaby answers.

"Why are we even spring cleaning? We've only lived here four months, things can't be that dirty yet!"

"But we didn't make these decisions while moving. We just packed everything and unpacked it, so we're overdue to take inventory. Spring cleaning is a worthwhile tradition regardless. I've done spring cleanings every year since I was thirteen."

"Thirteen!? You're kidding!"

"I never let my belongings accumulate," Barnaby thumbs through some clothes on hangers, and pauses. "I recognize that Maverick probably encouraged the tradition for his own ends, but with you and Kaede here, I can't accidentally throw out something that's important to us." He smiles at Kotetsu just as Kaede reappears, bag in hand. Barnaby thanks her, then asks, "Do you want to keep those? It's fine if you do, but please make a decision."

"Give me a minute. I want to reminisce a bit," Kotetsu starts lining up Pez dispensers before him. "Hey, here's the Wild Tiger one!"

"You bought one of yourself?" Kaede raises an eyebrow at the blue, cowl-headed candy holder.

"Of course! I got all the heroes who were active when I debuted, the full set! I've got all the Space Battles ones, too!"

"Even Lila Daywalker?" Kaede sits next to Kotetsu again and begins digging for her favorite character.

"Kaede, I'm going to vacuum the bottom of the closet now," Barnaby speaks up, trying to catch his helper's attention. "Could you plug it in for me?"

"Just a second!" Kaede replies, as she finds an interesting-faced dispenser and giggles at it.

"Kotetsu? I need to use the vacuum."

"Plug's in the wall," Kotetsu directs without looking up from the toys.

Barnaby sighs. He loses the Kaburagis for at least the next fifteen minutes, and then continues to lose them as old games, photo albums, and fashion relics capture their attention. Barnaby continues the lonely chore, always hindered by waiting for Kotetsu and Kaede's input on what to keep. In the end, it takes two days to finish cleaning, and they end up throwing out very little, but Barnaby is still grateful they completed that April cleaning together.

* * *

Kaede hears shouting behind the front door.

"…seem to think you're invincible, so you keep pulling crazy stunts—"

"Stunts? You think I'm messing around?!"

"That's what it looks like to me! You aren't taking any of this seriously!"

She doesn't knock. The voices inside are too loud, too raw.

"What, serious like you? Points and glory, that's what being serious is! It's always about points, sponsors, always about _you_!"

"It's _never_ about me! I'm thinking about you—"

"You're always waiting for me to screw up, that's what!"

"What?!"

"You think I'm pathetic, and you always have! I'm sick of your goddamn pity!"

"Why are you always jumping to conclusions?!"

She's too late to know what started the fight, but she can guess: something happened on Hero TV. She had gone to a friend's house and missed the broadcast, but something is wrong now. She's never heard Barnaby scream so loudly, or Kotetsu accuse so viciously. Kaede wants to open the door and make them stop, but her hands shake. If she opens the door, will they start screaming at her instead?

_Aren't they partners? Don't they love each other?_

She hears footsteps thudding toward the door, and with fearful instinct, activates her power. The last NEXT she touched was either Kotetsu or Barnaby, and with Hundred Power, she leaps up onto the roof of her own home while someone—Barnaby, that's his hair—storms out the door, down the steps, and into the street, walking away without a backward glance. She hears the door bump the frame, then someone still inside—Kotetsu, who else?—slams it so hard that Kaede flinches.

Kaede stays on the dirty roof, hugging her elbows and trying not to cry. She had never imagined her dads could fight like that. But how could she have forgotten? They aren't actually her dads. She calls them "dads" because it's easy and natural and is quicker to say than "dad and dad's boyfriend," but Kotetsu and Barnaby aren't married. Nothing is forcing them to stay together. And they might not stay together just for her sake, either. Why would Barnaby stay to care for a girl who isn't even his real daughter? Why would Kotetsu put up with someone he hates just to give his daughter a second parent?

Her cell phone rings. The caller ID says 'Home.' She hugs her stomach and answers. "…Hello?"

"Hey, sweetie!" Kotetsu's tone is chipper, but his voice is tired, cracked. If Kaede hadn't heard him screaming a few minutes ago, she probably wouldn't have noticed. "It's getting kinda late. Are you still at Shivani's?"

Kaede swallows, and lies: "No… I'm almost home. I'm a block away."

"Good! Okay! Just checking! It's okay." Kotetsu says. "Everything's okay… Oh, um, just so you know, Bunny had to go out for something, so he can't cook dinner tonight… How does fried rice sound?"

Kaede's eyes prick. "It's fine. I'm going to hang up, I'm almost home anyway."

"Oh, okay. See you in a bit!"

Kaede snaps her phone shut before she even says goodbye. She takes a deep breath and, with her power, jumps off the roof. Her cover story is intact as she formally arrives home. Kotetsu doesn't mention Barnaby, except to say that he'd probably be back late and Kaede shouldn't wait up for him. She doesn't really wait for Kotetsu, either, spending the time before and after dinner curled up on her bed.

The next morning, Barnaby is back, but a severe, silent atmosphere hangs over the house. Barnaby and Kotetsu are still upset, and Kaede is the no-man's-land of their anger, and as much as Kaede wants to reach out to them, showing favoritism might start the fight all over again. The loudest sound in their morning is the radio when Barnaby turns the car on, a talk show with bad jokes and forced laughter.

When they turn onto the street of Kaede's school, she finally speaks. "Can you park for a second?"

Barnaby glances at her in the rearview. "What is it?"

"It won't take long."

He hesitates a moment, and Kotetsu snaps, "Just park, Bunny." Kaede's heart beats faster—did she just re-start the fight?—but Barnaby says nothing and parallel-parks.

"Get out of the car," Kaede instructs. "Both of you."

The heroes in the front move slowly, as if in rebellion, but they do get out, and stand on the sidewalk with Kaede. In an effort to stop thinking so hard, Kaede reaches for the technically-closer man: Barnaby. She wraps her arms around his middle and hugs him, squeezing, for a full five seconds. He holds her back, but tentative, confused.

When she pulls back, she looks him dead in his eyes and says, "I love you." Barnaby blinks, but Kaede doesn't wait for any sort of reply, and instead wraps Kotetsu in a hug just as tight and a little bit longer. When she ends that hug, she feels tears in the corners of her eyes, but there's nothing she can do at this point. She stares Kotetsu down and gives him his own, "I love _you_," more vow than statement, but as soon as it's done Kaede turns her back on the both of them and runs to school before they can see her cry. She doesn't want to guilt them, and she _definitely_ doesn't want them to think she's scared.

That night, Kaede feels that the pain is not gone, but the love is definitely back. Barnaby and Kotetsu are stealing more affectionate touches than usual—hand on back, shoulders touch, hands brush—like they're trying to make up for yesterday. Barnaby cooks dinner, Kotetsu washes the dishes, Kaede does homework on the kitchen table, and everyone is _talking_ again.

Later, Kaede slips out of her room and down the hall. In the other bedroom, she hears soft voices and a little crying, but she doesn't get close enough to hear who's saying what. It sounds enough like apologies that Kaede goes to bed comforted.

* * *

Kotetsu debates whether to put on his mask or not, and Barnaby convinces him not to bother. Kaede wishes that she had a mask, something that would make her look less nervous, but she doesn't have one and has to make do with a brave face.

The orphanage reminds her of her school. There are bedrooms instead of classrooms, but there's a cafeteria and library and some sports equipment. And maybe Kaede has been reading too many novels, but not a single orphan looks sad, like she expected. Actually, their faces light up the instant they see Barnaby, and they swarm to say hello. Kaede feels an urge to hold Kotetsu's hand, but she doesn't. Even though they're the happiest lost children Kaede could have imagined, she feels a pang of fear as she remembers how close she came to being just like them.

Barnaby introduces the children, one by one, to Kotetsu and Kaede, and listens to their stories since the last time he visited. He reads to them from a picture book as well, and Kaede can tell Barnaby is keeping them out of the staff's hair as they bustle about behind the scenes. Then they all go outside to play in the June sunshine. Several kids want to play Hero TV—Barnaby's parents are dead and he became a hero, so why can't they?—and Kotetsu throws his whole heart into this game, even acting as the bad guy and giving the children an enemy to catch. Barnaby leaves to discuss something with the staff. Kaede notices one caretaker give him a bright greeting card, and Barnaby smiles at the inside.

"Hey," a boy maybe a year younger than Kaede says. He's holding a black and white ball. "Do you play soccer?"

"I can play," she says. She's glad she wore sneakers.

"Great!" he says. "Be on my team, okay?"

"How do you know you want me on your team?"

"Because you're the biggest!" the boy grins. "You're like a big sister!"

Kaede's eyes widen, but then she beams. She loves hanging out with her dad's co-workers, the heroes, but even the youngest among them is much older than she is. Spending time at the orphanage turns that on its head; _she's_ the oldest. _She's_ the wisest. _She's_ the best.

There are barely enough children for a shooting match, but Kaede leads her "little brother" to victory.

* * *

Three sweaty people dressed in tank tops and boxers (or boxers-for-girls) lie sprawled on a sofa, listless and sticky. The TV is on, mumbling the script of a daytime drama on the pretense that they are watching TV together, but the air conditioner is louder than the television. On the coffee table, a single rotating fan swings back and forth, blasting the couch's occupants with a very narrow stream of cool wind, from Kotetsu on the left, to Kaede in the middle, to Barnaby on the right, then back again. It's too hot for movement. It's too hot for actual clothes. It's even too hot for Barnaby's glasses.

"Hey…" Kotetsu speaks up. "Do we have ice pops?"

"Maybe?" Barnaby says.

"I want one."

"Okay."

The fan swings on, fluffing the hairs that aren't stuck down with sweat.

"Don't you want one?" Kotetsu prompts. "Bunny? Hey, Kaede do you want an ice pop?"

"Will you go get it?" Kaede asks.

"Ah…" He pauses long enough to indicate he has no intention of getting his own ice pop or anyone else's. With his ruse discovered, Kotetsu skips straight to begging: "_Please_? I really want an ice pop, and it's too hot to move!"

"And you think we're any cooler?" Kaede complains.

"You're super-cool!" Kotetsu insists. "And you'd be the _coolest_ if you got Daddy an ice pop…"

"Ugh, stop complaining and get your own!" Kaede snaps.

"You can get one for yourself too, if you go!"

Kaede just groans. She pulls her hair up off her neck, flips it over the back of the couch, and stops moving.

"Hey, Bunny, can you—"

"No." Barnaby stares ahead, sightless and stoic and suffering with heat.

"But I just—"

"No."

"I'll—"

"No."

Kotetsu pauses. "I'll get hair ties for the someone who gets me an ice pop!" He offers.

"Why not get the ice pop yourself, since you'll be getting up to find hair ties?"

Kaede lets out a puff of laughter. "He gotcha…"

"You guys are bullies," Kotetsu flops his head against the back of the couch. "Big, mean bullies."

"Yep," Kaede agrees.

"That's right." Barnaby adds.

July is too hot to do anything else but sit on the couch and complain.

* * *

"Uh, Dad? It's not thawing," Kaede pokes the brick of ground beef with the spatula a few more times.

"Wait, it's okay! Just flip it over!" Kotetsu leans closer to Kaede's pan as she, with the help of her fingers, flips the frozen meat-brick onto the other side. "See? The part that was on the pan is brown and loose! Scrape that off and let it cook some more."

"That's going to take forever!"

"Old man, you didn't thaw it properly," Barnaby says as he rinses mushrooms at the kitchen sink.

"Hey, whatever, I'll take care of the meat, Kaede can do something else."

"Everything needs to be sautéed, but the mushrooms aren't ready yet."

"Just get started on the onions and garlic and then you can add the mushrooms later."

"But then everything will cook for different lengths of time. Something might end up undercooked."

"It's all going to bake for half an hour, what are you worried about?"

"It bakes for fifteen minutes. Pay attention to the recipe."

Kaede cuts through the bickering. "So… should I start sautéing the stuff?"

They answer at the same time: "Yes!" "No!"

Kaede rolls her eyes. "How am I supposed to learn to cook when you guys don't even know how?"

"I can teach you fried rice…"

"I don't want another person in the house cooking fried rice every night."

"It's not _every_ night!"

Barnaby slides his fingers under his glasses to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Here, Kaede. These mushrooms are washed, so you can cut them while we wait for the meat to cook."

"Okay, how do I do that?"

"Rinse off the cutting board, please. Then I'll show you."

Kaede cleans the cutting board and set it up on the counter as Barnaby instructs her on how to hold the mushroom and move the knife in a way that creates even cross-sectional slices.

"How'd you learn to do that?" Kotetsu glances over Kaede's shoulder at the rows of mushroom slices.

"I looked it up," Barnaby answers. "_Now _it's time to sauté these."

Cooking continues calmly for a few minutes, but when it came time to start combining other ingredients, the fight started up again.

Kotetsu removed the top from a can of mixed veggies and passed it to Kaede. "Alright, dump it out!"

"Wait—that's going to be too much!" Barnaby reaches out to stay Kaede's hand. "The recipe calls for one cup."

"The whole can should be fine, right? How many ounces are in a cup, usually?"

"Eight."

"And the can is ten, so it's fine, isn't it?"

"We can't put ten ounces of vegetables in a recipe that calls for eight!"

"Well, what do you think we're gonna do with two ounces of vegetables left over in a can? Might as well use the whole thing!" Kotetsu pokes at Barnaby's ribs. "And you want us to eat more veggies, too…"

"But we've never made this recipe before. We don't know what's going to happen if we carelessly alter the balance of ingredients."

Kaede groans. "I don't care which way it goes, but am I adding the whole can or not?"

Two answers: "Yes!" "No!"

Almost every time she asks a question, Kaede gets two answers. When the recipe wants a half-teaspoon of salt, Kotetsu is content to pinch with his fingers while Barnaby fumbles with measuring spoons. They add a bay leaf for flavor, but Barnaby is the only one who remembers to remove it before they toss the whole thing in the oven. The cheesy mashed potatoes spread on top have a little more cheese than directed, but the potato is thick and creamy and covers the underside completely.

While the shepherd's pie bakes, Barnaby, Kotetsu, and Kaede look at the kitchen and each other. There are dirty dishes and utensils everywhere, along with scraps of unwanted food, the meat grease in a little jar, and the bag of flour and jars of spices have been left topless next to the emptied cans of vegetables and tomatoes.

Kaede giggles and points at Kotetsu. "You got flour on your nose."

"Eh?!" Kotetsu swipes his nose and only manages to smear the stripe further across his face.

"Here, I can get that," Barnaby reaches to dust the powder off of Kotetsu's face, but he ends up spreading it around Kotetsu's face. "Wait—I need a cloth, or tissue…"

Kaede gets a second glimpse of her dad's significantly paler face and can't resist laughing. Kotetsu can't see his own face, but on a whim he pulls on his ears and sticks out his tongue, and Kaede laughs harder: "Dad, you look so stupid!" Kotetsu turns the silly face on Barnaby and even his boyfriend can't help laughing.

The shepherd's pie turned out wonderful—maybe not perfect, but warm and delicious. That August, the three of them cooked together and ate well.

* * *

As the maple leaves turn red and yellow, Kaede wakes on the morning of her birthday to a knock on her door. She sits up in bed, clears her throat, and calls, "Yeah?"

Barnaby's smooth voice answers. "It's me. I've brought breakfast for you."

Kaede combs her hair with her fingers and fluffs her pillow behind her back. "Yeah, come in!"

The instant Kaede sees him, she knows he's been awake for at least an hour. He's showered, his curls are arranged perfectly, and he's dressed, casually but sharply, like he expects a camera to appear from nowhere and take his picture. In his hands, he carries a legged tray with pancakes and strawberries and a tall glass of milk. If Kaede squints, she can see the sparkles shimmering around Barnaby's gorgeous face.

"Happy thirteenth birthday, Kaede," Barnaby smiles like a supermodel. "Did you sleep well?"

Kaede suppresses a smirk and crosses her legs under the blanket. "Pretty well…"

"I'm glad to hear that," Barnaby places the tray across Kaede's lap and sits at the end of the bed. "You're officially a teenager today."

"Officially, yeah."

"Do you feel any different?"

"Not exactly."

"I see. Well, that's makes sense." Barnaby places one arm on her bed and leans into it, creating a perfect aesthetic line from his shoulders to his hips and down to his feet. His curls swish, and Kaede can almost hear a chime of tiny angelic bells accompanying the sparkle in his eyes. "You're already so mature, crossing a milestone like this probably doesn't feel all that special."

Kaede stares at him for a second, then slaps a hand over her eyes. "Can you cut that out?"

"Cut what out?" Barnaby asks.

"This idol hero act." She lowers her hand and sees Barnaby staring at her, surprised and a little confused. "I've lived here for eight months, I know that you don't roll out of bed in the morning ready to hit the runway."

"I see," Barnaby's face falls a little. The sparkle dissipates. "I thought I should celebrate your birthday by looking my best, since you're a fan of mine."

"I'm still a fan, but I know you too well to be a fangirl. You're too human to me now."

"I'm 'too human' now? Is it a complement?"

"It's supposed to be," Kaede says. "How about you celebrate my birthday by being yourself?"

An enormous yawn at the doorway interrupts the two of them. Kotetsu stands at the doorway, still in an undershirt and boxers, hair uncombed, beard unshaven, and eyes half-closed.

"Morning," he groans, then he stumbles over to Kaede's bed and falls next to her. He kisses her cheek and pulls together a coherent phrase "Happy birthday."

"Thanks, Dad," Kaede grins. One of Kotetsu's hands rubs her back while the other reaches for her breakfast, plucking a strawberry off the plate. "Wait, what are you—" The berry is in Kotetsu's mouth before Kaede can do anything but get indignant.

"Hey, don't steal from my breakfast!" she scolds. "Barnaby worked hard to make this for me! Isn't that—hey!" She looks back to Barnaby and sees a strawberry between his teeth, too. "What are you doing?"

"Since I'm the one who worked hard, I'm allowed to steal some, aren't I?" Barnaby reasons.

"No, this is the stuff you've given to me! You don't have a claim to it any—_hey!_" Kaede slaps Kotetsu's hand as he reaches for a second strawberry. "This is my breakfast, and I'm going to eat it! Both of you, _get out_!"

* * *

"I saw a really cool ad today!" Kotetsu reports to Kaede. "It's a bouncy-castle land! They've got a giant room filled with those big inflatable slides and castles, and you get to go in and play around on them!"

"Okay…" Kaede says. "Why are you telling me this?"

"We should go! For Bunny's birthday!"

Kaede raises an eyebrow at him. "What makes you think he'd want to go there?"

"Because it'd be tons of fun!"

"It's for little kids. Barnaby would never want a birthday party like that."

Kotetsu pouts. "Then, maybe we can go camping! We can rent some gear and head out to the mountains! Getting out of the city would be awesome, even if just for a weekend."

"We can't go camping in late October. And seriously, what makes you think Barnaby would enjoy going twenty-four hours without a shower and sleeping on the ground?"

Kotetsu is still frowning, but his pout is more sincere, less petulant. "I don't know if Bunny's ever played in bouncy castles or gone camping before. It's only a few more years before he's thirty! I can't let him turn thirty without these passings!"

"Passings?" Kaede's eyebrow has not lowered a millimeter since she raised it. "Rites of passage?"

"Yeah, that."

"Look, I'm the child in this family, not Barnaby," Kaede explains. "If you think he wants to do any of those things, you can ask him, but I think he's going to say no."

Kotetsu thinks it over a little more. "Hey, maybe we can take him shopping! Fire Emblem can recommend some swanky stores, and we'll let him pick whatever he wants!"

"Does he like shopping?"

"Yeah, he looks like he's having fun when we buy you clothes and stuff."

Kaede rolls her eyes. "He _knows_ fashion, but that doesn't mean he _likes_ fashion. He never buys anything for himself."

"Maybe that's because we're always in girl stores. So we'll give him a chance to buy for himself! And then we don't have to pick a present…"

"Look, he's not into buying stuff!"

Kotetsu groans. "C'mon, I'm the only one coming up with ideas! What do _you_ think we should do?"

Put on the spot, Kaede fidgets and avoids the question. "W-Well, I think he likes the things he does a lot… Like, everything he wants to do, he just makes part of his routine, y'know?"

"Routine…" Kotetsu chews the word like a mouthful of spinach. "So the stuff we do anyways? How can that be special enough for a birthday party?"

"I don't know."

"Routine," Kotetsu continues thinking. "Daily, weekly, monthly, yearly…"

"You can't have yearly routines," Kaede corrects. "Those are more like 'traditions.'"

"Traditions?" Kotetsu repeats. Then he slaps his hand down on his leg and repeats, "Traditions! I got it!"

"What? What is it?"

The veteran hero is grinning brilliantly. "I know what we should do to celebrate Bunny's birthday!"

On the evening of October 31st, Kotetsu and Kaede proudly present Barnaby with a home-baked, home-frosted cake with twenty-seven candles. The construction and decoration are sloppy and amateur, but the flavor is fantastic. It tastes like love.

* * *

The clock strikes midnight. Everyone is awake and working. A soggy tri-fold poster about plate tectonics leans next to the front door, with indecipherable text and muddied paintings. Now, the family has eight hours to finish re-creating the water-damaged project and hopefully catch a few hours of sleep.

When pickup after school was delayed by a crime-in-progress, Kaede had gone to the library to put the finishing touches on her doubtless A+ project. But when her heroic dads finally brought her home after a dinner out, a sudden gust of November wind tugged the poster from Kaede's hands, flung it about, and deposited it, face-down, in a deep, wet puddle. Hours of work wasted, and the presentation is tomorrow.

The family allowed themselves a moment to despair—Kotetsu cursed, Kaede cried, and Barnaby stared in silent horror—but there was nothing for it. No matter how tired and upset everyone was, the entire project had to be redone that night, and they set to work immediately.

Kotetsu brings a tray with two cups of tea and a heaping plate of Oreos, carrying it more carefully than he's ever carried anything in his life, save the infant Kaede. He places the cookies at the edge of the table, one cup near Barnaby, and one cup near Kaede.

"Thanks," Kaede croaks without looking up.

Kotetsu rubs her back a little, but promptly flees before his Crusher for Justice hands can break anything. He already did the work of running to the store for new supplies, and there's nothing left for him to do but iron Kaede's favorite shirt and skirt for tomorrow's presentation. Barnaby sits across from Kaede with a pair of scissors, slicing her re-printed headings, bullet points, and images into neat rectangles and pasting them on the board at her direction. Kaede herself switches between sending her notes one file at a time to the printer and sketching anew her cross-section of an oceanic-continental plate collision.

It's after midnight, and the poster still needs paint.

With her two helpers—Kotetsu keeping everyone fed and watered, Barnaby offering his steady, well-organized hands—Kaede finishes painting at 1:18 AM. They all go to bed with barely a goodnight.

The next morning, a flawless seismology project greets them for breakfast. With a few hours of sleep to refresh them, everyone properly admires their work and shares congratulatory kisses. Then they wrap the prized project in waterproof plastic and send it off to be graded.

Kaede earns her A, and she shares that success with her dads. It was a team effort, after all.

* * *

Every single blanket in the house is either wrapped around someone's shoulders or spread across their lap. Kotetsu, clad in sweatpants and a quilt, dips a ladle full of chicken broth into some mugs. Barnaby, in a fluffy duvet, went upstairs to retrieve some bed-pillows for more lumbar-supportive lazing. Kaede is a burrito on the couch. Kotetsu laughed and called her a 'Kaburagi-to,' and Kaede protested that the joke was lame and dumb, but can she say? She is a burrito. A _warm_ burrito.

Barnaby returns with pillows, tucks one behind his back, another behind Kaede, and leaves the third for Kotetsu to use as he wished. He adjusts his chosen warm coverings to insulate his front half, with a significant corner spread over Kaede's legs as he wraps an arm around her shoulders, too. Kotetsu returns with soup, passes one mug to Barnaby, and donates his quilt to Kaede's shoulders so she can free her arms enough to drink and still stay warm. With his quilt sacrificed, Kotetsu pulled a nearby throw blanket around his torso and leaned close to Kaede, nursing soup of his own.

December snow falls. The street still has most of its Christmas lights up, but with the New Year in a few days they'll be coming down soon. Kaede can't wait for New Year's. Christmas ended up being a small event in the household, both out of respect and simply out of lack of energy. It had been a big year for everyone; they had spent this year as a family.

Kaede looked at some picture frames hung on the wall. There were nearly twenty-five years of memories placed in frames, portraits that could watch over them as they lived together. In a place of honor, Kaede saw the photo that a stranger had taken almost exactly one year earlier—Kaede Kaburagi, standing between Kotetsu Kaburagi and Barnaby Brooks Jr on her first day at a new school, all three of them nervous and proud and smiling with love.

They had spent one year as a family, and they hoped for many years as a family to come.


End file.
